What Is Substance Use Disorder? A Plain-Language Guide
clock Posted on July 12, 2026

Maybe you just heard the term from a doctor, or read it in a letter from your kid's school counselor. Maybe you've been calling it something else in your head for years — "his drinking problem," "her thing with pills" — and now there's a clinical name attached to it, and you're not sure what that name actually means.

That's what this guide is for. What is substance use disorder, ........